In this respect, there will have to be technical solutions, for example a new waterworks, Christiani said. “Or you face the challenge of getting the water from where it is available to where it is needed. But then you would have to lay pipes on a large scale.”
At the same time, Christiani dampened expectations of possible economic effects from the Tesla settlement. He referred to Brandenburg’s Economics Minister Jörg Steinbach (SPD), who had spoken of a pull effect that would attract more companies. “There is definitely movement in the area,” said Christiani. “But not in our community because there is no commercial space.”
The Hamburg ECE Group acquired the last large commercial area of 35 hectares in the Hangelsberg district. In addition, however, there are no plans to designate further commercial areas.
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“But that’s what we wanted,” the mayor said. “We want to remain a recreation area.” There are even considerations within the municipal council to have Grünheide recognized as a resort.
Read the entire interview here:
Mr. Christiani, are you relieved that Tesla can finally start? You once described the settlement as winning the lottery.
Yes, the settlement is still a lottery win, mainly because many young people from the region are already working at Tesla. They did not have to move to other federal states, as was normal for years, because there were no jobs.
Is the final approval for the Tesla factory a cause for celebration for you?
The Prime Minister said that this project will not fail because of the Brandenburg bureaucracy. Everyone is sticking to it consistently, the state of Brandenburg, the district and the municipalities, really everyone. If this continues in other areas and we implement the infrastructure measures and the many municipal projects with schools and daycare centers as planned over the next few years, this could really become a public holiday for the community.
How is the mood in the community? There was also a lot of skepticism.
Well, there was and is a positive overall attitude towards this settlement, that hasn’t changed. At the open day in October last year, Tesla managed to change the mood for the better.
As the?
People were able to take a look behind the scenes and see what and how is produced and what opportunities there are to work at Tesla. Not everyone has been in a car factory in their life. It’s fascinating how fully automated the process is and also what demanding jobs can be practiced. That impressed a lot of visitors, I think. I haven’t heard sentences like “Who knows if cars will ever be built there” since then.
Have you met Elon Musk or shaken his hand?
No never.
The authorities had admitted up to 9,000 people at the same time for the folk festival. (Archive image from October 9, 2021)
(Photo: dpa)
Did you expect that?
No, that would be tactically unwise in the middle of the approval process.
Community got a boost
How great has the interest in Grünheide grown since the decision to settle there?
Interest has definitely grown, and the first investors called a week after the announcement of the settlement. But Grünheide will definitely not become a second Wolfsburg. It is our job to ensure that the structures in the individual districts are not destroyed.
There are no major construction projects?
The municipality has an area of 126 square kilometers. Of these, 95 square kilometers are forest. Five square kilometers of water. Agricultural land, streets, paths, squares – and 9,000 people are distributed among the rest. 85 percent of the entire area is a protected area, i.e. it is located in a nature and landscape conservation area. A careful development is of course possible, but with 12,000, maximum 13,000 inhabitants it is over.
>> Read also: Record speed despite setbacks – How Tesla and Brandenburg outsmarted the bureaucracy
What is all due to the Tesla Effect?
The community got a boost. Just take the train connection: The regional express has been going to Grünheide every half hour since 2020, before it was only every hour. What we would never have dreamed of is the construction of a new rescue center with fire brigade, diving squadron, water rescue, emergency doctor. This is quite unique for a village of 9000 and a huge added value for the population.
Expansion of the Tesla factory
How do you feel about a potential expansion of the Tesla factory? Isn’t the size of the first expansion stage enough for the region?
No, actually not. The agreed development plan applies. And in the area of infrastructure measures, he is assuming a final expansion with up to 40,000 employees. The investor would not have had to buy 300 hectares just for one expansion stage.
The Brandenburg Economics Minister Jörg Steinbach (SPD) has spoken of a pull effect due to the Tesla settlement, which will attract other companies. Has anything happened there?
There is definitely movement in the area. But not in our community because there is no commercial space. The Hamburg ECE Group has acquired the last large commercial area of 35 hectares in the Hangelsberg district. In addition, there are no plans to designate further commercial areas.
But that also means that the economic Tesla effect for the community is limited.
Yes, the economic effect of the Tesla settlement is limited. But that is also intentional. We want to remain a recreational area. There are even considerations within the municipal council to have Grünheide recognized as a resort.
Water is one of the most sensitive issues when settling here. Do you share the concern that there might not be enough water for the population because of Tesla?
That is not the prevailing opinion in the population. The water board has to supply Tesla with water and remove waste water. This is clearly contractually regulated for the first expansion stage. So far there are no agreements for any further stages of expansion. The fact is: the currently available production volumes are not sufficient for this. In this respect, there will have to be technical solutions, for example a new waterworks. Or you face the challenge of bringing the water from where it is available to where it is needed. But then you would have to lay pipes on a large scale.
Elon Musk himself once said that the trees around the factory premises would not grow if there was no water, and that it is not in the desert here. Was the statement helpful?
You can get the impression that there is enough water here if, like Mr. Musk, you look down on the region from the plane. What he ignores is the whole problem of groundwater. There were also voices that said, what do you want, the factory isn’t that big. I replied that when you’re sitting in a plane at an altitude of 7,000 meters, it doesn’t look that big.
More: Brandenburg’s Economics Minister – “Elon Musk is a total workaholic – I don’t know when the man sleeps”